QUESTIONS FROM A CITY GIRL PART #2

Hey farming friends!

It’s me again, your favorite city girl here with a few more questions! I recently watched a video on the IL Corn YouTube channel! It was about Marty Marr, the Illinois Corn Grower’s Association’s District 10 director! He was talking all about the farm he owns and works on and I just had a few more questions about farming life and some of the things he mentioned in the video!

1. Soybeans

He mentioned that he grows soybeans on his farm. I think soybeans are a popular vegetable grown here in the Midwest, correct me if I am wrong, and I was wondering why that is. What all can soybeans be used for other than eating purposes?

2. Machine powered vs. man power

In the video Marty mentions about “doing it the old fashioned way”. I have no clue what he means by this and am wondering what tool he is holding in the video. He mentions snagging a weed, does this mean cleaning up the field or does it have a different meaning. Would you rather have your work done mostly by machines or hand done and why?

3. Challenges and Rewards

My next question is what do you think the biggest challenges are as a farmer today? Again, I have never even set foot on a farm so I can’t imagine the struggles that come with working on one and I am very curious to find out. Along with the biggest challenge of working on a farm, what is the most rewarding thing about being a farmer?

4. Life on the Farm

If you are living and working on a farm, do you use your own resources or are they just something you export. I assume that if you live on a farm that you are going to be supplying yourself with food that you’re personally growing. Is this true?

Can’t wait to see your answers to my questions and thank you for helping me get more knowledgeable about farming! Here is the link to the video and check back often for more videos, we are always posting!

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One thought on “QUESTIONS FROM A CITY GIRL PART #2”

Q #4 struck me…
My husband is a farmer. On our farm we grow corn, soybeans, and every so often have a field of oats. We also raise registered Black Angus (black cows that we breed and sell to other farmers and also use for meat) and have alfalfa fields (to make hay for the cows to eat).
So to answer your question, the only home-grown product we utilize is our beef. (You can’t eat corn or soybeans right out of the field so we’re better off selling those through our elevator). So we usually have a particular animal that we chose not to sell and hold back for our family. When it’s the proper age and weight we put the cow in a trailer and take it to the meat locker to be processed. A few weeks later we bring home our animal – only this time in coolers full of steaks, roasts, and hamburger. You seriously can’t beat a “home-grown” steak!!
I’m sure that vegetable producers and other types of farmers eat more of their own goods than we do – but I would say we’re a pretty standard example of a Midwest cash-grain operation.